WO1996004596A1

WO1996004596A1 - Method of determining spectacle lens edge data

Info

Publication number: WO1996004596A1
Application number: PCT/DE1995/000995
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lutz Gottschald
Original assignee: Wernicke & Co. Gmbh
Priority date: 1994-08-01
Filing date: 1995-08-01
Publication date: 1996-02-15
Also published as: DE4427071A1; CA2196280A1; EP0775334A1

Abstract

A method is disclosed of determining edging data for a spectacle lens edge. This involves the following steps: first, an image of the inner contour of the mount, i.e. of a former or template, is produced on a sheet on a scale of 1:1 by tracing the outline of the mount, i.e. of the former or template; the calibre-defining points are marked in the image of the mount on the sheet; the image of the mount with the marked-in calibre-defining points is recorded using a scanner; and the scan data are passed via a telephone line to a computer which determines the edge data. The method according to the invention is characterized by the fact that a standard fax device, which transmits the sheet to a receiver unit in the usual way, is used for transmitting the data and the fax data received by the receiver unit are entered into a computer which determines the appropriate edge data from the transmitted data.

Description

Procedure for determining the boundary data

Description

Technical field

The invention relates to a method for determining the edge data of a spectacle lens according to the preamble of claim 1.

State of the art

For some time now, most of the edging devices on the market for eyeglass lenses, such as grinding machines, have not been working as copying machines which "copy" a so-called shaped disk when edging the eyeglass lens, but have been numerically controlled To be able to calculate the numerical edge data required for a particular spectacle lens to be edged by a grinding machine is not only the knowledge of the course of the so-called lens rings of the spectacle frame in a numerically usable form, but also the knowledge of the position of the individual viewpoint through it Spectacle lens related to the respective frame - also in a numerically usable form - required.

In practice, the problem frequently arises that the customer already brings glasses to the optician business in which new glasses are inserted should be. As a rule, there is of course no data record for glasses frames brought along. Furthermore, not all manufacturers of eyeglass frames provide "numerical data sets" for their models, which can be entered directly into the respective edging device.

It is therefore necessary to numerically record the contour of an existing spectacle frame or the associated measuring or shaping disk in order to be able to control the edge device accordingly. So-called "tracers" have been used in practice for this purpose. With these tracers, a stylus scans the frame or the associated lens.

However, these tracers are comparatively expensive, so that their purchase is not particularly worthwhile for small optician shops, since in smaller shops there is often no need for the use of a tracer for several weeks. In addition, the tracers from different manufacturers output the measurement results in different data formats, so that the numerical data records obtained can often not be used as order data records for different spectacle lens manufacturers.

A method has been proposed in US Pat. No. 5,257,198 in which the use of a tracer can be avoided by first making an image of the frame on a sheet by moving around the frame with a drawing pen. The viewing points are then drawn into the picture of the version.

The picture of the version thus produced is obviously digitally captured and closed with a special digitizer transmitted to a computer via a line, which can be, for example, a telephone line. The boundary data determined by the computer from the transmitted digital data are used to control the actual boundary device.

However, this method also has a number of disadvantages:

This method obviously does not use commercially available devices, since it is expressly stated that the function of the digitizer, which is not described in more detail, should be "similar" - but obviously not the same - to conventional scanners or fax machines (column 4, line 20 below U.S. Patent 5,257,198). Accordingly, it is still necessary to purchase a special device for the transmission of the data required for the determination of the edge data to the manufacturer of the spectacle lens.

On the other hand, previously determined digital data are transmitted in this method; this means that the data must be transmitted with a special data structure, which may does not allow ordering from different manufacturers of spectacle lenses.

Presentation of the invention

The invention is based on the object of developing a method for determining the edge data of a spectacle lens in accordance with the preamble of patent claim 1 in such a way that the edge data can be determined by the optician in a form which enables the edge data to be passed on to any manufacturer and so that ordering from any manufacturer is possible without the optician would need a device that was specifically purchased to determine the order data.

An inventive solution to this problem is specified in claim 1. Further developments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

The invention is based on the basic idea that practically every optician shop currently has a fax machine. The reason for this is that most of the suppliers of spectacle lenses have switched from the previous telephone order acceptance to fax errors to fax order acceptance.

This fax machine, which is customary in the trade and is not necessarily supplemented by any additional options, is now used according to the invention to record the contour of the spectacle frame or of the shaped or measuring disk in a "numerically usable" manner. For this purpose, a picture of the inner contour of the frame or the shaped disk is first made on a scale of 1: 1. This picture can be produced in any way and in particular by placing the frame on a sheet of paper and then the outer or inner contour of the frame or the outer contour of the shape or measuring disk of the frame with a drawing pen, such as a pencil , a ballpoint pen or the like.

The error-free bypassing of the contour of the frame or the disk is facilitated by the use of a pin attached to a so-called cranesbill. By guiding the pen on the cranesbill, which ensures the "straight position" of the pen, errors are avoided, such as can occur "by hand" when moving around the holder or disk. In addition, in a manner known per se, the viewpoint is additionally drawn into the image of the version and is evaluated by the computer. In this way, the supplier receives all the information required for the edging of a spectacle lens in a numerically evaluable form, the special "fax data format" (tif) used worldwide not being used for the transmission.

The image is then transmitted with this fax machine to a receiver station which stands for the spectacle lenses at the supplier. The fax data are read in by the supplier in a computer which determines the data required for the respective order from the fax data.

In order to be independent of any scale transmission errors, it is preferred according to claim 2 if a scale is also transmitted to calibrate the transmitted data. This scale can be, for example, an "axis cross" with known dimensions. It is therefore irrelevant, for example, if the fax machine in the optician's shop enlarges or reduces the scanned sheet for transmission.

On the sheet - or an additional sheet - sent by fax to the supplier or manufacturer of the tubular or edged spectacle lens - in addition to the image of the frame and the viewing points, the additional order data, such as the spherical effect of the spectacle lens and possibly the cylindrical effect, can of course also be found and axis position of the cylinder axis or, in the case of progressive lenses, the addition, the material of the lens, given if the tint of the glasses, anti-reflective layers etc. are available.

This order data can then be evaluated manually - by entering data into a computer - or preferably by means of an OCR method or a direct evaluation method (claim 3):

In particular, it is possible to print certain order options on the sheet on which the picture of the version is located or on an additional sheet, which are ticked according to the specific order and numerically evaluated by the supplier. If, for example, the fax is "read" directly into a computer using a fax card, the computer can evaluate the "crosses" directly on the ordering options. This reduces recognition errors at the supplier.

The procedure according to the invention has the advantage that the data are created by the optician independently of a special data system at the supplier, since the image of the frame is transmitted by the standardized fax transmission system without reference to a special numerical data system. The transmitted image data representing an "analog image" is only evaluated at the supplier.

If the supplier is only to select a tubular spectacle lens suitable for grinding into the respective frame while the grinding process is being carried out by the optician, it is sufficient if the computer available at the supplier determines the minimum required diameter of the tubular spectacle lens (claim 5). Of course, it is not only possible with the method according to the invention that the computer calculates from the transmitted fax data the minimum diameter of the spectacle lens required for a certain version and given viewing points; the computer can also carry out a center thickness optimization with the fax data (claim 6) and / or calculate the edge data for a edge device (claim 7).

In particular, it is also possible for the computer to control the edging device directly (claim 15), so that the supplier delivers to the optician business already rimmed spectacle lenses which only have to be inserted there into the frame. This further reduces the equipment required in the optician business.

Of course, it is also possible for the edge data calculated by the computer to be entered off-line - for example by sending a diskette to the optician - into the edge device at the optician (claim 14).

Although it is possible for the supplier to numerically record the printout of a commercially available fax machine set up at the supplier and functioning as a receiving station using a scanner or the like, it is preferred according to claim 10 if a computer with a fax card is used, which temporarily stores the fax data. This eliminates all errors that can arise from the printing of the transmitted fax data and / or their evaluation with a scanner. Of course, it is possible, however, that a printout of the fax data is also created, which is used for control purposes (claim 11). This printout can be produced by a fax device connected in parallel to the computer (claim 12) or by an output device connected to the computer, such as a printer (claim 13).

All device components required to carry out the invention are known:

The optician only needs a sheet of paper - possibly with a printed or subsequently applied scale and optional ordering options - and a commercially available fax machine, which does not have to have any special features.

In addition to a computer with a suitable program, the supplier also requires only a commercially available fax machine and an evaluation unit for fax printing or a commercially available computer fax card.

It is therefore possible for a person skilled in the relevant art to carry out the invention based on the above description, so that the illustration of an exemplary embodiment and a drawing can be dispensed with.

Claims

Patent claims

1. A method for determining the edge data of a spectacle lens, in which a picture of the inner contour of the frame or a shaped or measuring disk is firstly scanned on a sheet by moving around the frame or the shaped or measuring disk with a pen is made, the view points are drawn on the sheet in the picture of the version, the picture of the version with the shown view points is scanned, and the scan data are transmitted via a telephone line to a computer, from which boundary data is obtained determined, characterized in that a commercially available fax machine is used to transmit the data, which transmits the sheet to a receiver station in the usual manner, and in that the fax data received by the receiver station are read into a computer which Edge data determined from the fax data.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that there is a scale for calibrating the transmitted data on the sheet transmitted by fax, which is also transmitted and evaluated by the computer.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the other order data are available on the sheet transmitted by fax and thus also transmitted.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that the further order data are transmitted in a manner directly detectable by the computer.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the computer only determines the minimum required diameter of the tubular spectacle lens from the fax data.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the computer performs a center thickness optimization with the fax data.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the computer calculates the boundary data for a boundary device from the fax data.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that the computer controls the Randungsvor¬ direction.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that a pin. pin attached to a stork beak is used.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that a computer with a Fax¬ card is used, which interim-saves the fax data.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that in addition a printout of the fax data is created, which is used for control purposes.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the expression is created by a parallel to the computer switched fax machine.

13. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that the expression by an output device connected to the computer, such as. a printer is created.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that the boundary data calculated by the computer are entered offline into the boundary device.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that the boundary data calculated by the computer are entered directly into the boundary device.